India to play Aus in quarterfinal
Chennai, March 21
Yuvraj Singh smashed his maiden World Cup century and took two wickets as India crushed West Indies by 80 runs in their last Group B league match to set up a quarter-final clash against defending champions Australia, here yesterday.

Yuvraj Singh raises his bat to celebrate his century against the West Indies in Chennai on Sunday. India won by 80 runs. — AFP

a dash of Sherry
India can spin a web around Aussies
There is a lot anxiety in the minds of the fans now that India are going to face the Australians in the quarterfinal at Ahmedabad on Thursday. Every team is the architect of its own destiny and India wasted a great opportunity earlier when they lost to South Africa.

India have the edge: Yuvraj
Chennai, March 21
With Ricky Ponting struggling to find form in the tournament so far, India can exploit the chinks in the Australian armour and beat them in the World Cup quarterfinal on Thursday in Ahmedabad, middle-order batsman Yuvraj Singh said.

Zimbabwe crush Kenya by 161 runs
Kolkata, March 21
Zimbabwe spinners backed the impressive performance of their batsmen with a tidy bowling display as they ended their World Cup campaign with a 161-run crushing of Kenya here yesterday.

Pak fans get visa
New Delhi, March 21
Despite the ongoing tensions between India and Pakistan, cricket will play a role in promoting people-to-people contact. India has issued visas to 5,000 Pakistanis to facilitate their visit to World Cup cricket matches, including the final at
Mumbai.

Somdev attains career best 73rd ranking
New Delhi, March 21
Reaping rich reward for his fantastic run at the Indian Wells Masters, Somdev Devvarman today jumped 11 places to achieve his career-best singles ranking of 73 in the latest ATP list.

Saina wins Swiss Open
New Delhi, March 21
Ace Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal notched up her first title of the year, clinching the Swiss Open Grand Prix Gold trophy with a straight-game victory in the summit clash against Ji Hyun Sung of Korea in Switzerland today.

Saina Nehwal plays a shot during the women's singles semifinal match at the
Swiss Open tournament in Switzerland on Saturday. — AP

Armaan hopes for podium finish
Silverstone, March 21
As the pre-season testing for the Formula Two championship is all set to begin here, India's upcoming racer Armaan Ebrahim is hoping to improve on his podium finish ratio this year.

Sujjan, Anirban look for glory
New Delhi, March 21
India's new star Sujjan Singh is looking to exploit the home conditions and translate his impressive form into a victory at the SAIL Open golf tournament starting on Tuesday.

Short onesTuffey to replace injured Bennett New Delhi: The ICC today approved fast bowler Daryl Tuffey as a replacement for injured Hamish Bennett in the New Zealand squad for the ongoing cricket World Cup.
New Zealand had nominated Tuffey as a replacement for Bennett, who had suffered an injury to his left ankle and Achilles tendon while bowling during their 112-run loss to Sri Lanka in Mumbai on March 18, and ICC today confirmed World Cup's Event Technical Committee's approval of Tuffey as a replacement.
The confirmation was conveyed to the New Zealand Cricket Board on behalf of the committee. —
PTI

Chennai, March 21
Yuvraj Singh smashed his maiden World Cup century and took two wickets as India crushed West Indies by 80 runs in their last Group B league match to set up a quarter-final clash against defending champions Australia, here yesterday.

With yesterday's win India finished second in group B with nine points, one less than top finisher South Africa. India will face Australia on Thursday in Ahmedabad.

Electing to bat, India suffered yet another late batting collapse to be all out for 268 in 49.1 overs after Yuvraj Singh's brilliant knock of 113. Fast bowler Ravi Rampaul took five for 51 to start the slide as India lost seven wickets for 50 runs in 7.4 overs.

India skittled out the Caribbean side for 188 with seven overs to spare as the spinners did an outstanding job. Like India, West Indies too suffered a batting collapse following a strong start as they lost last seven wickets for just 34 runs at the M A Chidambaram Stadium.

Zaheer Khan (3/26) was the most successful Indian bowler with three wickets while Yuvraj (2/18) and R Ashwin (2/41) took two wickets apiece.

It was not a flourishing but still a decent start to West Indies chase with Devon Smith (81) playing the sheet anchor by sharing three good partnerships with the top order batsmen.

He raised quick 34 runs with Kirk Edwards for the first wicket, then stitched a 57-run stand with Darren Bravo and followed it up with 63 run partnership for the third wicket with Ramnaresh Sarwan (39).

Smith was taking it away from the Indians as West Indies were placed comfortable at 154 for two in the 31st over but once Zaheer Khan bowled Smith, the Caribbeans lost wickets in a heap.

Harbhajan sent back hard-hitting Keiron Pollard (1) and Yuvraj had Devon Smith (2) stumped by Dhoni. That brought skipper Darren Sammy on to the crease but threw his wicket by running himself out, thanks to a terrible mix up with Sarwan.

Yuvraj struck for the second time when he had Andre Russell (zero) caught by Yusuf Pathan at point. Zaheer ended all Windies hopes when he scalped Sarwan. It was Ashwin, playing his first game in the tournament, who handed India its first breakthrough by trapping Edwards with his carrom ball.

The umpire had initially turned down the appeal but the the decision had to be overturned after the Indians asked for a review, which went in their favour.

Smith pulled Harbhajan Singh for a four and Bravo hit Ashwin for a six and a four as the duo was quick to wrest the momentum back from the Indians. — PTI

There is a lot anxiety in the minds of the fans now that India are going to face the Australians in the quarterfinal at Ahmedabad on Thursday. Every team is the architect of its own destiny and India wasted a great opportunity earlier when they lost to South Africa.

The Australians are not the best team on a slow, sluggish surface that helps spinners.

If they had sealed that game, India would have been facing New Zealand in the first game of this knock-out stage. But now India will have to face the music whether they like the tune or not. The win against the West indies on Sunday night was good but the next match is going to be the one that separates the men from the boys and no second chance will be on offer.

The Indian team is doubtless aware that the Australians will be a very difficult side to beat. They have won the World Cup on the last three occasions and know what winning is all about. They have come to this World Cup with a battery of pace bowlers and a solitary frontline spinner. So, what should be India’s strategy for this all-important match?

First and foremost the Indians have to believe that they can beat this Australian side. And this Australian side has one big weakness-they are not the best team on a slow, sluggish surface that helps the spinners. Their batsmen will struggle to make runs on such a wicket and they themselves do not have the spinners to exploit such a track.

The wicket in Ahmedabad will have to be slow and sluggish and India will have to go into the game with both Harbhajan and Ashwin.

When necessity pricks it is prudent to be bold. India will have to be bold and create an environment that helps spinners and exploit this weakness of the Australian side. Australia’s weakness will have to be India’s strength.

Australia lost the match the other day to Pakistan in Colombo at the Premadasa Stadium where the wicket was on the slow side and their batsmen could not play on the rise. And, importantly, before the start of this World Cup, India defeated Australia in the warm-up match at Bangalore also on a slow track.

The Indians will have to adopt much the same strategy that they did in that warm-up match at Bangalore.

Virender Sehwag, who missed the match against the West Indies will be back for this crucial game. And I believe the Indians should leave out Gautam Gambhir, have Kohli at number three and Yuvraj Singh at number four, Dhoni at five, Yusuf Pathan at six and Suresh Raina at seven.

After Yuvraj scored a hundred against the West Indies on Sunday, it is now a must that he should bat at number four against the Aussies as well. Raina’s presence lifts the team’s fielding and he and Pathan can go for the big shots in the slog overs.

Worry is the interest paid by those who borrow trouble. India’s Plan-A before the Cup was to top their group and play New Zealand in the quarters (as the Kiwis were going to be the number four qualifier from the other group).

But things have not gone according to Plan-A and India now have to get the better of the seasoned Aussies. If the Indians give Australia flat, docile wicket, then the home team will have all the time after the match to rue such a move at leisure.

The only way India can win this one is by making the conditions conducive for their own spinners, taking the Aussie pace bowlers out of the equation and giving no pace to the Aussie batsmen to go for their shots.

The Indians will also have to pick the right combination and after all this strategy the players will have to execute these plans to perfection on the big day on the field. It won’t be easy but it is certainly not impossible.

Chennai, March 21
With Ricky Ponting struggling to find form in the tournament so far, India can exploit the chinks in the Australian armour and beat them in the World Cup quarterfinal on Thursday in Ahmedabad, middle-order batsman Yuvraj Singh said.

Yuvraj said Australia are no longer the same intimidating force due to retirements of some key players and the defending champions are also copping with the problem of Ponting's poor form.

"Australia have won five games. The two teams are equal at the moment. Whosoever plays better on Thursday will win the match. No doubt, Australia are a top side having won the title for last three years," Yuvraj said after his all-round show helped India crush West Indies by 80 runs in their last Group B league match.

"However, players like Glenn McGrath, Shane Warne, Adam Gilchrist are not there in the team. Ricky Ponting has not been in his form for quite some time. We will focus and try to win the match by exposing their weakness," Yuvraj, who was adjudged man-of-the-match for his 113 with the bat and two wickets with the ball, said.

Yuvraj was also not concerned of facing the three-pronged Australian pace attack and said India are prepared for it. "We do not have any issue with the short ball. We have been a number one Test and ODI side in the world. If we had problems with the short balls, we cannot be on top. We know definitely that Australia have pace and get wickets on their pace. We are prepared for it," said Yuvraj. — PTI

Kolkata, March 21
Zimbabwe spinners backed the impressive performance of their batsmen with a tidy bowling display as they ended their World Cup campaign with a 161-run crushing of Kenya here yesterday.

Electing to bat, Zimbabwe were powered to an imposing 308 for six with half centuries from Craig Ervine (66), Vusi Sibanda (61) and Tatenda Taibu (53) as the trio helped their team recover from a sluggish start.

Zimbabwe spinners then tormented the Kenyans to skittle them out for 147 in 36 overs in a completely lop-sided battle of minnows at the Eden Gardens. Left-arm spinners Ray Price (2/20) and Graeme Cremer (2/28) and off-spinner Greg Lamb (2/21) shared six wickets between them in their last Group A match.

Zimbabwe were already out of contention for a quarterfinal berth but they ended their World Cup campaign with a win and four points to finish at fifth in the group ahead of Canada (2) and Kenya (0). The Kenyans were never really in the chase. Instead, they showed urgency in getting themselves out.

The Kenyan top-order of Alex Obanda (23), David Obuya (0), Collins Obuya (1), Steve Tikolo (10) and Tanmay Mishra (4) put up a pathetic batting show as half of the side were down by 12 overs with the score reading 44 for five.

But the lower-order offered some resistance as Kenya avoided the ignominy of getting out for their lowest score — 69 — in the World Cup which was against New Zealand in their first Group A match.

Batting at number eight, Nehemiah Odhiambo top-scored for Kenya with a 47-ball 44 which was studded with five boundaries.

Chasing the huge total, Kenya were troubled by Zimbabwe bowlers right from the start and the run-out of Obuya, who scored an unbeaten 98 against Australia, did not help their cause. — PTI

New Delhi, March 21
Despite the ongoing tensions between India and Pakistan, cricket will play a role in promoting people-to-people contact. India has issued visas to 5,000 Pakistanis to facilitate their visit to World Cup cricket matches, including the final at Mumbai.

In case the Pakistan cricket team reaches the semi-final, it could be played in Mohali.. The visas were issued after due security checks by the immigration and various security agencies of each of the Pakistani national who applied for the travel document to watch the quarter finals, semi finals and the final to be held in different venues in India.

The 15-day multiple entry visas were issued only to those applicants who could show a proper ticket of the ICC World Cup cricket matches. So far, Pakistan have not played any of its World Cup matches in India. — TNS

New Delhi, March 21
Ace Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal notched up her first title of the year, clinching the Swiss Open Grand Prix Gold trophy with a straight-game victory in the summit clash against Ji Hyun Sung of Korea in Switzerland today.

Second seed Saina beat Ji Hyun 21-13 21-14 in 43 minutes to make amends for her quarterfinal exit from the All England Super Series in Birmingham last week. The world number four Indian had beaten the unseeded Korean, ranked 19th, during the first round of Indonesia Open Super Series last year.

Saina, who had a subdued beginning to the year after recovering from a ligament injury, showed her mettle all through the tournament to swell her trophy cabinet.

Ji Hyun tried to keep pace with Saina till 7-7 but the Indian was indomitable as she broke off from there and surged ahead with gaint strides to pocket the first game comfortably. In the second game, Saina was ruthless as she opened a four-point lead at 7-3, and held fort to canter to her first title of the season.

The 21-year-old Saina had won three Super Series titles last year — Singapore, Indonesia and Hong Kong Open — besides winning the Commonwealth Games gold and India Grand Prix gold. She also won the Indonesian Super Series in 2009 besides winning the Chinese Taipei Open Grand Prix Gold in 2008. — PTI

New Delhi, March 21
Reaping rich reward for his fantastic run at the Indian Wells Masters, Somdev Devvarman today jumped 11 places to achieve his career-best singles ranking of 73 in the latest ATP list.

Somdev reached the pre-quarterfinals in Indian Wells, eventually losing to finalist and top seed Rafael Nadal but not without giving a good fight to the world number one Spaniard.

Rohan Bopanna, who along with Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi of Pakistan reached the semifinals of the doubles event at the same tournament, also improved his ranking by four places to 15. The Indo-Pak pair had lost to eventual champions Alexandr Dolgopolov and Xavier Malisse. Leander Paes (7) and Mahesh Bhupathi (5), however, remained static.

In the WTA list, Sania Mirza broke back into the top-100 as she stands 99th in the singles list with a jump of eight places. This week Sania is seeking to qualify for the Miami event in the USA. She has been seeded 19th and will take on Chinese Xinyun Han in the first round. — PTI

Silverstone, March 21
As the pre-season testing for the Formula Two championship is all set to begin here, India's upcoming racer Armaan Ebrahim is hoping to improve on his podium finish ratio this year.

It will be Armaan's third season in F2 having finished 10th in the 2010 championship with one podium finish. He will be testing at the hallowed Silverstone track here tomorrow and then at Snetterton on March 30.

"I look forward to a new season while aiming for at least a top-3 finish in the championship," he said. — PTI